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Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

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Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#11

Post by mcdougle »

nemmonszz wrote: post #10
deedubaya wrote: post #7

If you have an employer, this is usually a pretty easy sell. Approach your boss about transitioning Aging Product X to a new technology stack because the current one is becoming defunct. Of course this will require some training for you, but it is easier to teach you a new skill set than to hire someone with that skill set and get them to learn about Aging Product X. If you aren't employed and are contracting/freelan…

Is convincing employers to transition technology stacks really something that is generally considered easy (or even doable)? I'm stuck maintaining 'enterprise' software running on VB6 and ColdFusion 9 and the idea of getting my employers to sanction a migration to something newer is laughable.

We're finally starting to consider talking about transitioning old software from Access 97 to a C# .NET web app at my job.

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#13

Post by hkarthik »

I did this back in 2009. Here's how to do it.

Pick a technology stack that you want to get a job in and build a side project in your spare time. Attend meetups with experts in your local community and learn how to make it awesome. Build relationships with them along the way.

Use those relationships to get some part-time contract work in said technology stack with someone local. Document this experience and build up a portfolio.

Eventually, use the knowledge you've obtained from your side project and part time contract work to apply for full time jobs. You'll then be very marketable, and you will have enough knowledge to do well in interviews.

Good luck!

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#14

Post by oskarth »

hkarthik wrote: post #13

I did this back in 2009. Here's how to do it. Pick a technology stack that you want to get a job in and build a side project in your spare time. Attend meetups with experts in your local community and learn how to make it awesome. Build relationships with them along the way. Use those relationships to get some part-time contract work in said technology stack with someone local. Document this experience and build up a…

This is great advice!

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#15

Post by wmil »

nemmonszz wrote: post #10
deedubaya wrote: post #7

If you have an employer, this is usually a pretty easy sell. Approach your boss about transitioning Aging Product X to a new technology stack because the current one is becoming defunct. Of course this will require some training for you, but it is easier to teach you a new skill set than to hire someone with that skill set and get them to learn about Aging Product X. If you aren't employed and are contracting/freelan…

Is convincing employers to transition technology stacks really something that is generally considered easy (or even doable)? I'm stuck maintaining 'enterprise' software running on VB6 and ColdFusion 9 and the idea of getting my employers to sanction a migration to something newer is laughable.

Honestly if they expect you to maintain that code then your salary should reflect the long term damage to your career and sanity.

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#16

Post by lsc »

nemmonszz wrote: post #10
deedubaya wrote: post #7

If you have an employer, this is usually a pretty easy sell. Approach your boss about transitioning Aging Product X to a new technology stack because the current one is becoming defunct. Of course this will require some training for you, but it is easier to teach you a new skill set than to hire someone with that skill set and get them to learn about Aging Product X. If you aren't employed and are contracting/freelan…

Is convincing employers to transition technology stacks really something that is generally considered easy (or even doable)? I'm stuck maintaining 'enterprise' software running on VB6 and ColdFusion 9 and the idea of getting my employers to sanction a migration to something newer is laughable.

It's a thing. I don't know about convincing employers, but employers do it. I've participated in such projects. hell, I know people who have done such things in government and military contracting contexts. It does happen

so yeah, it happens. Legacy systems are re-written. convincing your employer? yeah, I've never seen that part happen, so I can't say anything, but I certainly have seen the aftermath.

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#17

Post by nasalgoat »

When I interview people, I am less interested in their specific experience than I am in their ability to think and troubleshoot problems. Google solves the knowledge problem but doesn't solve the problem of intelligently using that info.

I imagine other employers are similar, and given the high demand for tech workers, you might be surprised at the reactions.

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#18

Post by a3voices »

druml wrote: post #3
a3voices wrote: post #2

You could do work at night on side projects to learn new skills.

Better if you could do it together with others. Join a study group of the tech you want to learn or even try going to relevant hackathons.

That's not always available depending on where you live, but possibly a good idea.

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#19

Post by mrj »

My advice: thinking it is just "different keywords" is exactly why you may lose income. The syntax may be easy to change but you're changing an entire stack that will have it's own conventions, history and culture.

If you want to be paid well, it's an awful lot more than just keywords.

Re: Ask HN: How to reskill without losing income?

#20

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

nasalgoat wrote: post #17

When I interview people, I am less interested in their specific experience than I am in their ability to think and troubleshoot problems. Google solves the knowledge problem but doesn't solve the problem of intelligently using that info. I imagine other employers are similar, and given the high demand for tech workers, you might be surprised at the reactions.

I do the same, but from reading a lot of comments in similar threads here, it seems that we're a minority. Many (most?) employers want to hire people with only the exact skills & technologies they're currently using.

I was hired into my original position here knowing absolutely nothing about the language or the technology. Like you, my manager just wanted raw talent that could be retrained and it worked out for him. That's probably colored my interviewing practices over the years, but an awful lot of people don't want to take that kind of a risk.

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